1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention relates to systems for delivering refuse fuel to a boiler/incinerator.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Solid waste from municipal and industrial sources is being used in increasing amounts as boiler fuel in the commercial generation of steam and electricity. This is done for economic reasons as well as because of a diminishing number of available landfills. The waste is generally preliminarily processed before its being fed to the boiler. Such processing typically includes shredding and then separating ferrous materials from the shredded waste with a magnetic separator. Recyclable and/or unprocessable materials may also be removed from the waste at a picking station prior to its transferral to the shredder.
Various systems have been devised for providing shredded waste material to the boiler of a waste treatment facility. U.S. Pat. No. 4,740,127 is directed to one such feeder assembly which includes a pair of diagonally oriented belt conveyors which define opposite sides of a hopper. Waste material deposited in the hopper is transferred to a chute conveyor which in turn carries it to a steam generating furnace. A second system employing an inclined conveyor for discharging solid waste fuel to a boiler is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,602,572.
The transferal of shredded solid waste material from the shredder to one or more discharge outlets may be accomplished by a conveyor which drags the material through a trough-like enclosure One of the problems encountered in such systems is the tendency of the conveyor to become caught upon some of this material, particularly over discharge outlets which may have filled up to an overflowing level. The conveyor, which is positioned above such outlets, would tend to ride up on or jam against the waste material, thereby rendering the entire conveying system substantially inoperable.